| It's quite a privilege to attend on herIt's not... 345 |
[Jan. 28th, 2010|02:18 am] |
It's quite a privilege to attend on herIt's not too much to say that she will do credit to our establishment!"
I noticed that Van Helsing never kept far awayThis was possible from the disordered state of things in the householdThere were no relatives at hand, and as Arthur had to be back the next day to attend at his father's funeral, we were unable to notify any one who should have been biddenUnder the circumstances, Van Helsing and I took it upon ourselves to examine papers, etcHe insisted upon looking over Lucy's papers himselfI asked him why, for I feared that he, being a foreigner, might not be quite aware of English legal requirements, and so might in ignorance make some unnecessary trouble
He answered me, "I know, I knowYou forget that I am a lawyer as well as a doctorBut this is not altogether for the lawYou knew that, when you avoided the coronerI have more than him to avoidThere may be papers more, such as this
As he spoke he took from his pocket book the memorandum which had been in Lucy's breast, and which she had torn in her sleep
"When you find anything of the solicitor who is for the late MrsWestenra, seal all her papers, and write him tonightFor me, I watch here in the room and in Miss Lucy's old room all night, and I myself search for what may beIt is not well that her very thoughts go into the hands of strangers
I went on with my part of the work, and in another half hour had found the name and address of MrsWestenra's solicitor and had written to himAll the poor lady's papers were in orderExplicit directions regarding the place of burial were givenI had hardly sealed the letter, when, to my surprise, Van Helsing walked into the room, saying,
"Can I help you friend John? I am free, and if I may, my service is to you
"Have you got what you looked for?" I asked
To which he replied, "I did not look for any specific thingI only hoped to find, and find I have, all that there was, only some letters and a few memoranda, and a diary new begunBut I have them here, and we shall for the present say nothing of themI shall see that poor lad tomorrow evening, and, with his sanction, I shall use some
When we had finished the work in hand, he said to me, "And now, friend John, I think we may to bedWe want sleep, both you and I, and rest to recuperateTomorrow we shall have much to do, but for the tonight there is no need of usAlas!"
Before turning in we went to look at poor LucyThe undertaker had certainly done his work well, for the room was turned into a small chapelle ardenteThere was a wilderness of beautiful white flowers, and death was made as little repulsive as might beThe end of the winding sheet was laid over the faceWhen the Professor bent over and turned it gently back, we both started at the beauty before usThe tall wax candles showing a sufficient light to note it wellAll Lucy's loveliness had come back to her in death, and the hours that had passed, instead of leaving traces of 'decay's effacing fingers', had but restored the beauty of life, till positively I could not believe my eyes that I was looking at a corpse
The Professor looked sternly graveHe had not loved her as I had, and there was no need for tears in his |
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